COMMENTS

Nature Ali thoughts:

My ideas on this bird are that it is a juv. Ash-throated Flycatcher based on the chibp call. The tail wear reminds me of many of the rehab birds that I have seen at FACT. I surmise that this bird may have been a nestling found by a well meaning person and raised in a cage. Whether this was locally or somewhere north is to be determined on whether the bird continues at this site. If the bird continues then I will hazard a guess that this was recently released locally and has no other flycatchers to help it know the migration path. It might overwinter as the area is a thermal pocket and might have enough food to sustain it. If it disappears then it may be on a migration path. At any rate this scenario would explain the late date for the bird. 

Robbie Fischer of Pacifica wrote on Wed Nov 6 2003

Hello, The Santa Cruz Myiarchus has not yet completed the rounds for a decision by the CBRC. It seems most likely it will be definitively identified by voice. As I'm sure others have suggested, every effort should be made to get recordings of the Lake Ming bird's vocalizations.

Randy Little of Milpitas, CA wrote on Wed. Nov 5 2003:

Having chased another "Nutting's Flycatcher" that ultimately turned out to be an over wintering Ash-throated Flycatcher (Santa Cruz bird from last winter), I'm going to be a little more cautious. You may have already received similar information, but here goes.

First of all, trying to make the visual differentiation between Nutting's and Ash-throated in the field is extremely difficult at best.

Second, the bird sounded nothing like any Ash-throated Flycatcher that any of us had ever heard. Very, very few over-wintering Ash-throated Flycatchers have ever been recorded in Santa Cruz Co.

Third, birder's desire to find a rarity pushed many if not all observers to claim a Nutting's Flycatcher. Documentation recorded and reports sent to CRBC for review.

I added Nutting's to all my appropriate ABA lists for which I could apply it.

Then, many months later, Alvaro Jaramillo, Sr. Biologist at SFBBO, was able to analyze a video recording with audio. Al leads trips to Central and South America for a major "Birding" tour company and had recorded both Nutting's and Ash-thoated Flycatchers on their wintering grounds. He then used some software to construct sonograms from all three recordings. (Audibly, I thought they sounded similar. Short peeps.) When the sonograms where compared, it left no doubt that the Santa Cruz Nutting's Flycatcher was an Ash-throated Flycatcher, much to my and many other's chagrin!

I would say that to confirm this record and I'd think that the CBRC have learned from this previous reporting, that a sonogram analysis is almost necessary for confirmation. This is the avenue I would pursue.

Until then...Myiarchus....................................................................TBD.

John Wilson of Bakersfield, California wrote on Wed. Nov 5 2003:

Hi All, I've just spent the last two hours carefully looking at Ken's excellent photos using a loop, Ali's and Kelli's photos, as well as comparing the recorded calls Ken and Brenda had with all of the recorded calls on Joe Morlan's web site, and read Lanyon's paper (on the web site). http://home.pacbell.net/robbie22/Flycatcher/flycatcher.htm
I'm guessing that the bird is an Ash-throated Flycatcher. Puzzling aspects of the plumage are possibly cleared up in Lanyon's paper such as our bird having at least one secondary feather with obvious rufous edge. Birds in post-juvenal molt (in Nov and Dec) can retain some juv. secondaries for a while. Lanyon also points out that the lores and auriculars are always gray in Ash-throated, brown in Nutting's. Our bird is clearly gray in the photos. I put on headphones and listened to Ken and Brenda's tape recording of the calls and compared them to all of the calls on the above web page. To my ear they sound like the calls given by Ash-throated. Michael suggested that last night as well. I'm not sure I have the tail sorted out yet. The outer rects look rather ratty while the central rects look fresher. I wonder if a juv could have molted the central tail feathers already. Anyway, it's a great bird. I wouldn't bet the farm on this ID, but I'd bet a pretty good chunk of change. Pretty fun.

Michael McQuerrey of Bakersfield, California wrote on Wed. Nov 5 2003: